Malkovich was a horrible choice for this production due to his age
Malkovich was a horrible choice for this production due to his age.
On a basic visual level, every single scene in this film in which Malkovich has to play a teenager is flagrantly absurd. As such, remaining immersed in the story becomes impossible.
Some actors who look way younger than their actual ages can play teenagers when they are in their thirties, but Malkovich is not one of them. He looks older than his actual age.
They should have done a much better job with casting the sons for this production. They needed actors who could convincingly play all of the different ages that their characters appear as in various scenes.